Discover Pymatuning Bassin'
By Darl Black
PYMATUNING - According to a recently released report from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife service, Pennsylvania ranks third in the nation with the number of bass fishing trips made by anglers each year. Although rivaling trout in angler-interest statewide, largemouth and smallmouth bass don't get much attention at Pymatuning; Pennsylvania's largest reservoir because most anglers are interested in walleye.
Bass may not be the species of highest demand at Pymatuning Lake, but in my book, bass fishing is far more exciting and challenging than 'ho-hum' walleye angling. Regardless of their size bass slam artificials, make drags sing and go airborne in a flash by comparison, Pymatuning walleyes are wimps.
Changing Face of Pymatuning Bass
In 60 year old Pymatuning Reservoir changes to the lake environment have altered the bass population As a young lad in the early 1960s, I recall the lake with my dad and catching respectable largemouths from stump fields" in the northern end, as well as from lily pad bays throughout the lake. But the wood cover already three decades' old was steadily disappearing, and during the next decade, weedbeds unexpectedly vanished. Loss of cover, along with other possible influences, saw a drop in the largemouth bass population; The smallmouth population, however, in-creased.
Bass took a back seat way back! That is until about 1990 when tournament bass fishermen rediscovered Pymatuning. Tournament fishing had grown rapidly in Pennsylvania during the 1980s - a period when rivers and several major lakes had a year-round bass season. But when the PF&BC gradually returned all inland waters to a closed-to-harvest spring season, bass anglers turned to Pymatuning for spring fishing adventures. With a year-round season on black bass at Pymatuning, Pennsylvania tournament bass fishermen now flock to the lake from mid April to mid June to fish over two dozen competitive events. But once the Keystone's regular bass season opens, bass anglers pretty much abandon the lake. Suddenly, directed fishing pressure on largemouth and smallmouth bass drops to almost zero. That's why bass still ranks only about fourth on the list of most sought after fish on this 14,500-acre reservoir Even with intense fishing pressure during the spring, sampling work by PP&BC Fisheries Manager Craig Billingsley indicates that young-of-the year bass recruitment is stable these days. In part this is due to the fact that tournament bass fishermen are not interested in" taking" or "harvesting" bass They simply borrow the bass for a day carrying the fish in a boat's aerated livewells until weigh-in and then returning them to the lake.
Pymatuning Bass Techniques
When tournament bass fishermen started fishing Pymatuning in earnest they applied techniques different from what the typical Pymatuning fisherman had relied on. While live minnows and nightcrawlers are the main-stay of many Pymatuning fishermen, bass anglers use only artificial baits and while traditional Pymatuning anglers drift, troll or anchor, bass fishermen use an electric motor to slowly move their boat along the shore while repeatedly casting and retrieving lures.
In the cold water period of April and early May, lures such as jig-and-pig, spinnerbaits, and jerkbaits are fished around shallow wood and isolated rocks in bays for largemouth bass. Smallmouth may occasionally be taken in these areas, too, but they are more likely holding On rock-rubble points and shoals (submerged islands). Curl-tail grubs, tubes, spinnerbaits, small crankbaits, and jerkbaits are key lures for smallies.
As the water warms into the 60s during May, bites are less frequent as the majority of bass begin spawning. Bass do not feed while spawning, and react to lures only in defense of their nest. As more and more bass complete spawning activities, their aggressive feeding behavior returns. When water temperature reaches the high into the 60s and low 70s, a few more lures are added to the mix, such as small worms and softstickbaits. In the warmer water, topwater baits are also very effective for both largemouth and smallmouth. Some Pymatuning anglers rely on buzzbaits as their number one bass lure through the summer and early fall. A buzzbait is a strange lure. It is retrieved by constant cranking. It should be fished just fast enough to keep it churning the surface without sinking. Cast it over weedbeds and around protruding wood cover.
Through the years, tournament fishermen have uncovered a few peculiar tips for presenting lures to Pymatuning bass. First downsized lures in the 1/8 to 1/4-ounce size are usually best in part because the lake's average bass is relatively small. Secondly, it does not take much cover on Pymatuning to attract and hold a bass. Thirdly, chartreuse is a hot smallmouth color on Pymatuning. Finally although bass are regarded as a fish of relatively shallow water, Pymatuning bass seem to be oriented to exceptionally shallow water through the entire fishing season. If fishing deeper than six feet, then you are likely too deep to catch a Pymatuning largemouth any time of the year; although occasionally smallmouths may be taken slightly deeper. Most Pymatuning anglers catch bass in water less than four feet deep.
Future of Pymatuning Bass
Besides revealing to other fishermen how to successfully catch bass at Pymatuning, tournament bass anglers have also raised an interesting question. Why don't Pymatuning bass grow bigger? Detailed catch records from two of the major tournament organizations show the average weight of bass taken in tournaments increased slowly, but steadily, since the influx of competitive events seven years ago. Although hundreds of bass are caught during tournaments, very few fish weigh in over three pounds. A bass over four pounds is rare at weigh-in, and in seven years the number of bass going over five pounds at bass population at the scales can be counted on one hand. Some anglers speculate that bass are some unable to compete effectively for forage in the shallow lake with the vast number of walleye.
Bass growth rates at Pymatuning are extremely poor, in both the main lake and the Sanctuary where fishing is not permitted," states PF&BC biologist Billingsley. Pymatuning is very fertile water, and at least in the Sanctuary there is a lot of cover. Of course both the Sanctuary and main lake are overrun with walleye, creating a lot of competition for food. We know that when young crappies and young walleyes compete for the same forage, walleyes usually win out. It could be the competition from walleye is keeping bass growth rates down."
What can be done to enhance the Pymatuning? current habitat program can replace some of the lost natural cover that bass need, if the structures are placed shallow enough. And what about increasing the average size of bass? If competition from an inflated population of walleyes is the cause, then reducing eliminating the stocking of walleyes should improve the bass growth rates. However, Billingsley says that bass anglers should not hold their breath for that option to take place any time soon.